Business

More than a dozen lawsuits have now been filed against former truck engine maker Caterpillar over its 2007-2010 year model ACERT C13 and C15 engines. A multidistrict litigation court has consolidated the cases.

The prospect of a proposed Safety Fitness Determination rule coming this year seems to have diminished, as the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has made its work on producing a rule raising the minimum amount of liability insurance for carriers a higher priority, according to projected rule publication dates in a recent DOT report.

The national average price for a gallon of on-highway diesel fell in the week ended July 14 to $3.894 a gallon, according to the government. This is the second straight week the price of diesel has dropped and the lowest the price of diesel has been since January, save for two weeks in June.

Pilot Flying J has entered into an agreement with the U.S. Justice Department to resolve the criminal investigation into the company's fraudulent rebate withholding scheme, agreeing to pay a $92 million fine. That's in addition to the $85 million civil settlement from November.

A federal appeals court ruled this week that motor carriers are not exempt from California state law requiring mandatory paid breaks for workers, overturning a ruling made by a lower court that had exempted motor carriers and opening the door for similar challenges, both in California and elsewhere.

A class-action lawsuit filed July 10 by three trucking companies against Navistar-International echoes claims of similar lawsuits filed this week: The truck and engine maker knew its EGR-only MaxxForce engines had defects and Navistar concealed those problems from buyers.